Altermentality

http://tindeck.com/listen/nhil Chords and percussion ahoy! And more sparklies at the ending. I'm going to try to get some better headphones because I seem to have problems telling when stuff needs to be EQ'd... And I hate having to put a track up here and have people hold my hand through that particular process... but I think it just takes a lot of practice and listening. It has a picture now so that means I'm taking it seriously. I didn't draw this one though >_> I need a sig buddy for this one too...

Tom is more audible now, EQ adjustments. Snare was frustrating the heck out of me and I didn't like it so I left it out in favor of the rides, which I think sound appropriate for the song anyway. Is a snare necessary? I don't think so in this song, but tell me if you think it could benefit. http://tindeck.com/listen/uqpt I'm starting to get to the point where I don't want to hear this song ever again ^^; So I'm just going to let sleeping Chomps lie for a while and hope for some feedback.

Whoa, thank you guys so much for all the feedback (and the faith)! I was really happy when I came home and saw all this today, and am particularly awed that my floundering around with a music program could produce something that someone would listen to 12 times straight without complaint. I've spent quite a while trying to build off of your suggestions. Here are the major changes I made. That I can remember. *I followed all of DarkSim's suggestions (hopefully well). By the way, the hiss was just part of that synth, X-Pander on the Kore Player, a variable called "noise". I turned it down so it should be better. *I got rid of most of the reverb and flanging. This should take care of the echo business. *Percussion... well, you'll hear it. With my improvements I doubtless also added a whole host of problems that need to be fixed. However, I do think the piece sounds more exciting and "bossy" now. (Like a boss?) Please tell me how to care for my wild new percussion children, I really don't know. *Got rid of the "tiny blip" (the first synth heard in the piece) for most of the song, as after it serves it purpose, it really gets in the way of hearing cooler stuff. *Added octave changes, an extension of the X-pander synth, and subtle sixteenth-note runs in the Chinese Banjo near the end of the song to make it more interesting. *Replaced the lo-fi piano/trance thing combo with something subtler. *Changed that kick, the bane of my existence. I think it finally sounds right now. Then again, I could just be brainwashed from listening to this for hours straight. *Turned up the master volume a bit. Tell me if it still seems too quiet. Whew! Here we go. Tell me what I still need to fix, please! You guys are helping me learn. Some day I'll be able to recognize this stuff on my own. http://tindeck.com/listen/xiss

Ok, sorry for the double post But I have an update! http://tindeck.com/listen/kdnt It sounds much cooler, I think. And despite thinking I was finished, I changed some instrumentation substantially and even added three new parts: a bassline, an original melody during some of the emptier parts, and a tambourine beat. ...Now I think I am done adding things. I'm so proud of how far I've come. I really have to thank you guys for being a supportive community; it's much less scary here for a newbie than I had feared.

Thank you very much! Changed the instrumentation very slightly, including the bass part, which I ultimately decided was overpowering. Played around with cleaning up some parts of it, messing with volume levels and panning. And I thought I was almost done! But I do think it sounds more interesting now, and the kick is no longer murderous. Now I fear it's too weak =/ Anyway, I don't think I'm able to make good judgments on this little sleep, so I don't even know if it sounds good or bad anymore. Will post again when I've finally settled on a final improved version.

I love this. Very mellow; it does sound like good bgm, and fits the mood of the original location, but with your own twist upon it. In fact, it makes me imagine what Traverse Town would be like in a Paper Mario game... This song is dear to my heart too. I play the melody on my saxophone! I don't think it's quite finished though. The drums still need a bit of work. Somehow the overall sound of the snare is just too... simple. But I'm new at this, so I don't quite know how to help you or what to say =/ Just that it's not quite done, but I look forward to when it is.

Wait what, really? Just reading through this thread, you seem quite mature and intelligent. You could definitely handle American Beauty! It was quite a good film. And it's my roommate's favorite of all time. She's much more of a movie buff than I am, so just passing a suggestion along. Avatar was beautiful, but its plot was nothing groundbreaking. It was just an enjoyable sensory experience, especially the first time; it's one of those movies you really really needed to catch in the theatres though. If it didn't go around touting itself as the best darn movie ever, I think people wouldn't be so critical of it.

Thank you very much! I toned down the flabby underside of the kick and I think it sounds a lot better now. I can hear a lot more of the subleties of the song now. Stuff I had forgot I put in there. XD I guess that fixed the cracking sounds too. I hope so, because I don't hear them, at least. The piano may have been a good idea, but I messed around and found another instrument for its part that I think sounds really cool. I don't have any good piano samples that sounded any better to my ears. That synth part was out of tune because it was on the Chinese banjo, which is meant to sound a bit out of tune. It's perfect for some parts, but... not all. I thought the frantic out-of-tune arpeggiation sounded creepy and cool at first, but upon reflection it did stand out. New version! http://tindeck.com/listen/kmbo

from Psychonauts. The theme itself isn't that terrifying, unless the idea of circuses themselves freak you out, which they do me... but this level combined a circus with a butcher shop in some hellish nightmare in which adorable bunnies get ground up into meat monsters. from DKC2. It's freaky and haunting while still being fast-paced and energetic. Gets your heart pumping for an exciting level, the only one of its kind in the game. Indeed the track is only used once, making it stand out all the more. from Super Mario World. This was my first game ever, when I was 3, so its music is wound into the very fabric of my being. And I'm pretty sure I still hear this song in my nightmares. Of course, I love the haunted house theme too, but this one is even creepier, with its background arpeggiation, threatening chords, and sudden powerful hits. Truly a classic.But what takes the cake... from Donkey Kong 64. As a trembling little eight-year-old girl, I would NOT play this level unless my parents were around. The endless dingy corridors and the possessed red-eyed Kremling robots that ran after you and then, just when it seemed they were about to seize you, would suddenly freeze in their tracks and have to rewind themselves, terrified me. But what really set the atmosphere was the creepy music. Listening to it today still makes me tense up, which is kind of silly, but this level will always retain somewhat of the nature of Hell that it had for me when I was younger, a place where toys try to kill you and childhood fun goes to die.

Okay, so! <3 I am going through and finally updating all my remixes now that I have time. For this new version, I tinkered with the crows a bit, EQ'd everything a tad, and added some new stuff at the end. Tell me what you think, and we can get this show back on the road! http://tindeck.com/listen/gfzb

I love them and downloaded several! Great work! Mad Monster Mansion might be my favorite.

Alrighty! It's a bit kickier, AND... oh man. It has sound effects. Chomping, barking, and haunting laughter. Everything that is Tutankoopa and his pets. http://tindeck.com/listen/nrzq Also, I'm going to mark this as "finished"... because it is. I don't think I'm going to change very much of it, but I'd still like any advice on production issues or anything that stands out. So I'll go ahead and add this version to the first post.

I made some minor adjustments. Quite minor, but I don't know what else needs to be done. Tell me if the kick still feels weak to you, because any more than this and it felt overly strong to me. That chirp will NOT go away. I noticed it's not just the kick, but you can also hear it in some of the low bass parts when they're more isolated. But it's only when I upload it to the internet, not on the original mp3 =/ http://www.tindeck.com/listen/ygde

Gloomy Galleon was a terrible level in an ok game. Its music, however, was fantastic. Maybe my favorite piece by Mr. Grant Kirkhope. It's melancholy and atmospheric, and when I remixed it into a more energetic piece, I wanted it to still have that atmosphere and a bit of sadness. Original: This is just a work-in-progress from someone who is still new to this. So please, be harsh. Tell me what I should do with its production (I am still learning all of that stuff), what needs to be fixed, and what I could add. Remix: http://www.tindeck.com/listen/gfms

Sadly I don't have much time these days, and am having to take the game really slowly, but the farther I get the more impressed I am. Especially with the fast-paced nonstop levels (mine carts/rocket barrels). Those were always my favorites in the original trilogy, and they have so much going on here. This truly is an amazing and beautiful platformer. With better music and controls that felt a bit more natural, it could've been a masterpiece. Here's hoping ardently for the sequel. I also rescind what I said about the enemies. While some of them are still generic-looking (the crabs, the moles), others are cute and loveable. I just adore the bats and those weird little blue things in the forest. And the struttin' turkeys on stilts.

Yeah, of course we need to compare this game to the original trilogy, as Retro was trying to make a game that captured what people love about those titles. So in order to evaluate their success, we need to discuss both what bothers us and impresses us about this game if it were a standalone title, but also how it pales or shines in comparison with the original series. But I did never expect DKCR to "live up to" the old games, because they are from a completely different era, by a completely different studio. While I do wish Retro would have tried as hard to capture the musical and artistic style as they had with the gameplay, because those things matter a lot to me, such things are really up to their discretion and they're free to charge ahead in whichever creative direction they choose. I can't complain too much about the art direction overall (in fact sometimes it quite impresses me), although the music is a bit lacking. Going to add another 99% vote for the same reasons. I would have remembered samples that bad. Read the Youtube comments on that video and you'll see that even Youtube commenters aren't swallowing it. I actually did try to look up a walkthrough to refresh myself on the music just now, but I couldn't hear it well. Still, it seemed completely different.

I've been playing with the nunchuck and it doesn't seem to be quite so bad as you describe. Next time I'll try playing with only the Wiimote sideways, and see which I think is the greater of two evils. True enough, my boyfriend was teasing me. "I thought you were a pro at Donkey Kong Country?" I am, when I have a solid controller in my two hands and can press a button to roll =P I'm not very far into it, just almost through the second world (the beach). So far, I think it's a very beautiful and creative game, and barring some control issues, a lot of fun. I definitely approve of this game and the effort that was put into it. It's a good platformer and I wish it lots of success in sales, and hopefully a sequel can be made, taking the issues people are having into account. (And with Dixie Kong.) However, like has been mentioned, the music is far from standout. While I love hearing old DKC melodies pop up again, the remixes as of yet are not particularly powerful in their execution, and I felt the same way as Hobocop: the beach music was really generic. Can't recall it from yesterday at all. The enemy designs are, like I predicted, also really generic. I didn't think Cranky Kong was going to be in (it was probably an early announcement, but I was trying to avoid spoilers) but I think they got him down pretty well. His comments make me smile, even if they're not quite as brutaly self-deprecating as Rare used to have.

Hell yes. I would use that one first as an example of DKC3's memorable songs. Also, what's wrong with the first level's music? ^^; It is ridiculously jolly, yes. But that befits a first level, and as far as I can remember, no stilt village levels occur later on into the game. In the GBA remake, the song for those levels was much darker, and it just felt out of place. However... the most I can say about the first level's music is it sounds like it fits right in with a game about monkeys running around collecting bananas and balloons, riding giant spiders and jumping on waddling wide-eyed crocodiles. Which is perfectly acceptable on the one hand; however, the music of the DKC series is far more epic and atmospheric than that, usually. Which is something worthy of respect. And a big reason why I've always taken such silly games seriously. Now I'm listening to a bunch of DKC3 music while waiting for my boyfriend to get back with the game. :3 (DKCR, that is) To be fair, I think a lot of the subtleties, the darker chords and the way different melodic lines interweave, I just didn't appreciate as a child. The music has a different flavor than the first two, though not necessarily worse. However, I still think some of the tunes are less memorable. For instance, I couldn't even remember the K. Rool battle song, whereas those of the first two are unforgettable. Water World - here is a theme that, as hinted above, I just could not appreciate when I was younger. Compare it to the unforgettable melody of Aquatic Ambience, or the pounding epic intensity of Lockjaw's Saga, and you'll see why. But still, the chords in this song are dark and powerful. Enchanted Riverbank is another of my favorites from the game. It's very upbeat and light, with a very fitting atmosphere for the levels, but also a fun melodic line that comes in.

Well, in my original post I had it that DKC3 wasn't as "good" as DKC2, but when I read it back over I changed it to "charming" for the very reasons you described. It is a good game. Some of the levels, in their gameplay at least, are brilliant. But it just doesn't have the charm that the first two have- at least, in my opinion. You pretty much nailed the reasons- I actually have nothing against Kiddy but a lot of the other character designs I found ugly. The levels weren't as creative and some of the music verged on bland (although some of it was very, very good). However, lack of good level design is not a fear that I have with DKCR at all, nor was it a flaw with DKC3.

That's a shame. I've been trying not to look at the game in too much detail, as I don't want to spoil much for myself. But I had misgivings it might be like this. It's like how, in Mario sports games and in Smash Bros even, Donkey Kong seems to be represented exclusively with jungle. Of course, that's the most obvious aesthetic choice, but why hasn't Smash Bros at least taken advantage of starting points like like the beehives, the theme park, the pirate ship, the enchanted forest, the factories... or, of course, the brambles... just anything else... you know? The DKC games, especially the second, had such rich environments. So much more than just stereotypical monkeys-in-a-jungle. Which is what sorta bugs me about the tiki enemies too. They're just what you'd expect to find... in a jungle. Obviously I miss the Kremlings. I always liked the Kremlings more than the Kongs. Since I was a little girl. But, putting aside the nostalgic bias, it still looks like a fantastic game, with a lot of creativity and eye for detail involved in its loving creation, and one that I'll have a lot of fun with. But of course, I'll always have to put it in another category than the original trio. What they meant to my childhood can never be lived up to. That time has passed. But it's totally ok because I never expected to see another DKC game anyway, so having another one sans Kremlings and Enguarde and probably Aquatic Ambience and possibly Cranky Kong is still way more than I ever expected to get. I was just going to say that no one can do quite what Rare did for the series- but to be fair, DKC3 wasn't as charming as its prequels, and DK64 missed a lot of the charm entirely, becoming basically an overextended Banjo-Tooie without the personality, so really I don't even know if Rare could've ever matched the first two again.

I'm glad you guys like the idea, and thanks to everyone who voted for me last time

Holy crap. I am in love. This actually reminds me a bit of Death Cab. But better. Especially because it's my favorite game. Honestly, it just warms my heart to hear this kind of stuff done with the music I've grown up with, and Stickerbrush Symphony lends itself especially well to this emotive acoustic song. Honestly, I feel that I like this better than I would even a very epic electronic mix. Best of luck, I'll keep my eyes out for the finished product.

Oh no... Well, let's make some noise! Shame on you. Nah, I'm in the same situation. I probably won't end up getting a 3DS for a long while, even with things like this that I just have to play sooner or later. Good thing I have great friends who let me borrow stuff... (I guess the making some noise for its western release will be a bit hypocritical in my case, but whatever.)

I agree. Well, I haven't played the Professor Layton games myself, but I've been meaning to. My friend, who's a huge fan of both series and is the nicest, most mild-mannered guy who probably wouldn't swear if you threw scalding water in his face, announced this game to me with "holy sh*t!"